Improvement in conductors ticket-books



any number of trips.

UNITED STATES* PATENT OFFICE.

R. DE ROODE, OF LEXINGTON, KENTUCKY.

IMPROVEMENT IN CONDUCTORS7 TICKET-BOOKS.

Specification forming part of Letters Patent No. 71,590, dated December 3, 1867.

. To lwhom t may concern:

Beit known that I, RUDOLPH DE RooDE, of Lexington, Fayette county, Kentucky, have invented a new and useful Railroad Ticket Book; and I hereby declare the following to be a full, clear, and ,exact description thereof, reference being had to the accompanying drawings, making` part of this specification.

My invention relates, first, to an arrangement of denominational tickets, in connection with a suitable indexed book or holder, insuring accuracy, and affording a complete system of check and counter-check between the company,.the conductor, and the public; secondly, a provision for insuring the destruction, by the passenger, of each ticket, so as to prevent a second use thereof.

Figures 1, 2, and 3 are representations of a book such as employed by me, opened at different parts. Fig. 4 represents a ticket previous to being folded backward.

In order to illustrate my invention, I will take, for example, a line of railroad from La Grange to Louisville.

I prepare a book substantially such as represented in the figures, having two classes of leaves, both of which are provided with ledger indexes, of which those, B, to the extreme right (colored buif) are marked in succession with the consecutive points or places of departure, and of which those, A, to the left of B (colored blue) are marked with the' points of destination.

First in order in the book I provide as many leaves (here colored blue) as there are stations in passing from La Grange to Louisville, each leaf having ,a projecting ear or tag, marked with the name of the appropriate station in its proper order, as, for example, Orion, Eden, Brown, Lawn, and so forth, and each leaf being furnished with one or more sheets of coupons and tickets, pasted or otherwise secured upon it, and inscribed with the fare from La Gran ge to that particular place or destination.

Each of these sheets may comprise as many full or half fare tickets as the page will conveniently hold, and there may be as many sheets as required for the purposes of one or A single coupon serves for each sheet of tickets, and each coupon is printed or otherwise marked with the fare and provided with blank spaces for the names of the places of departure and destination. Each sheet of tickets and its attached coupon may also be consecutively numbered, if desired. The tickets are partially severed from the coupon and from each other by lines of perforations, for easy detachment, and each ticket is marked with the price.

In order to insure the destruction of every ticket by the passenger, I inclose in each one a three-cent piece or other small piece of money, as indicated by red lines in the drawing. For this purpose I provide a fly-leaf or margin, as in Fig. 4, which, being folded backward at the line H, is pasted against the rear side of the ticket, so as to inclose the money. The said sheets are secured in the book by pasting or other attachment of the edges of the coupons.

Each station in succession is provided with a departure-index leaf and as many destination-leaves as there are stations beyond that particular point, so that each departure requires one less leaf of destination, and hence following the leaf of departure for the last station but one, (see roads,) a single leaf of destination is alone required, namely, for the terminus, (Louisville.)

In order to prevent the book being bulged by the insertion of sheets, I provide, between the leaves, back or thickening strips C, such as are customarily used in scrap-books.

For the return trip a precisely-simil ar book, with the stations in reversed order, is used.

It will be the business ofthe companys treasurer to take account of all sheets of tickets and coupons issued to each particular conductor, who will be required to return, at the termination of each trip, or whenever required, the book with the coupons and unused tickets still attached, and to pay over the equivalent of all tickets that are lackin'g. The book thus temporarily returned or handedinwill present a complete expos of the way or transient business transacted, and for which the conductor has received payment.

The arrangement of the index enables a road of great length to divide the book into several volumes, if required, each containing a certain number of stations only. For instance, the sample-book could be divided into two volumes, and still a conductor will have to carry but one at a time. The leaves of the book can be used for memorandaof com mutation-tickets,

, season-tickets, free passes, and other remarks.

Half-fares to and from every station are placed on the same page as the Whole fares, immediately below, also in sheet form. The remaining coupons show exactly how many passengers paying in the cars travel from one point to another, and how much they pay. The ticket itself designates the amount paid by the passenger. rEhe same may be used Without the money inclosure, by requiring the conductor to cancel the tickets by punching, or by having them ready punched in the book. Accompanyin g the book and tickets is a notice purporting to emanate from the conductor, viz: Passengers paying in the cars receive a ticket, showing the amount paid, which they will please destroy, and oblige the conductor.77

Although especially designed and intended for use on railroads, my invention is applicable to other public conveyances, &c.

I claim herein as new and of my inventionl. A conductors ticket-book provided with two series of leaves and corresponding indexes for the places of departure and destination, respectively, substantially as set forth.

2. A passengers ticket having a piece of money so secured Within it as to be removable only by the destruction of the ticket, substantially as and for the purpose set forth.

In testimony of which invention I hereunto set my hand.

R. DE ROODE.

Witnesses:

Guo. I-I. KNIGHT, J AMEs H. LAYMAN. 

